Irishman Awarded First Ever Victoria Cross (1854) in Crimean War
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- Опубліковано 21 жов 2022
- Charles Davis Lucas was the first winner of the Victoria Cross, the principal award for valour awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
Lucas was born on 19 February 1834 in Druminargal House, Poyntzpass, son of David and Elizabeth (Hill) Lucas. He enlisted in the navy at age 13 and by age 18 had seen active service in the Burma War of 1852-53, being awarded the India Medal.
The incident for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross happened during the Crimea War which broke out in 1854. Although the main area of the war was the Crimean Peninsula, significant hostilities took place in other places, particularly in the Baltic Sea. Lucas was a mate on HMS Hecla, a wooden battleship, part of the fleet of warships dispatched to blockade the Russian Baltic Fleet and divert their resources away from the Crimea. On the evening of 21 June 1854 the Hecla, the Odin and the Valorous attacked the large fortress on Bomarsund in the Aland islands which guarded the entrance to the Gulf of Bothnia. During the fierce action, which lasted most of the night, the Hecla closed on the fortress, within the range of the Russian guns.
The citation of the award records that - .
"..... at the height of the action a live shell landed on Hecla's upper deck, with its fuse still hissing. All hands were ordered to fling themselves flat on the deck, but Mr. Lucas with great presence of mind ran forward and hurled the shell into the sea, where it exploded with a tremendous roar before it hit the water. Thanks to Mr. Lucas's action no one was killed or seriously wounded."
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles...
www.newulsterbiography.co.uk/i...
Thanks for sharing, very interesting.
Interesting stuff. What a hero 👍
Yes interesting stuff
Did you know he is my ancestor he is on my Nana's side of the family
That's a nice bit of family history to have and a video you can share to show others of your proud heritage.
I redid the video with a voiceover, let me know what you think?
ua-cam.com/video/B1jfUhpS6C8/v-deo.htmlsi=Sv9HJ2NI8Wlxn3jI